Letter from J.D. Hooker [Joseph Dalton Hooker] to George Maw

Information

Scope & content: Written from Royal Gardens, Kew. Manuscript

He has had a long discussion with Smith [John Smith, curator at Kew] about markers, and he agrees that the iron shanks should be made so that the markers may be slipped in and out; they find that the frost breaks off the markers, though far more are broken by their own careless people; such a shank would be generally more useful; they would replace the enamelled marker with a wooden one in the meantime, saving the hassle of storing old shanks and such; more than half the enamelled markers that Maw made for them are smashed, or useless as the plant is dead or had its name, country or authority changed; he understands that the slate tally could not be coated, and that the stock markers would be unprofitable; the most economical solution would be removable markers and universal shanks; they will send a sample hanging marker at once; he asks Maw to reconsider the colouring of the croci, as the drawings are so lovely, and there is no reason that the colouring should not be at least as good as in the ‘Botanical Magazine’; the shading is at fault, being to the right in some figures and to the left in others

Credit Line: Courtesy of David Symonds Hooker / The Descendants of Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker / RHS Lindley Collections